Mail-box.



UNITED STATES 'PATENT- Patented May 19, 1903. i

OFFICE.

WILLIAM B. BARNES, OE FAYETTE, ILLINOIS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 728,353, dated May 19, 1903.

Application filed .Tune 12, 1902. Serial No. 111,346. (No model.)

Be it Aknown that I; WfLLIAr/.ty B'. BARN-ns, a citizen of the United States, residing at Fayette, in the county of Greene and State of Illinois, have invented a new and useful Mail- Box, of which the following is a specification.

'This invention relates to mail-reoeptacles for use at private houses or other localities where it is desired to have mail delivered and where it may be preservedfrom the weather and also from being tampered with surreptitiously. V a

The device will be especially valuable for use in connection with the r-ural freejdelivery system, as the device provides for the adequate protection of the mail and is accessible only to the party possessinglthekey thereto. It may be made of any size andwill preferably be made of steel of sufficient strength to withstand any strains to which it may be subjected and to afiord ample protection to the contents. i

The invention consists in a casing having a slidable drawer in its upper part and lan Outlet-door connected to its lower part, the drawer having a movable bottom operative from outside the casing by which the mail-matter after being deposited in the drawer and the drawer closed may be deposited' into the casing below the drawer, the movable bottom of the drawer also serving as a stop when in its inverted position to prevent the withdrawal of the drawer, and thereby preventing' the surreptitious removal of the mail-matter.

The invention further consists in a stop attached to the ;drawer or its attachments,

whereby its entire withdrawal is prevented,

so that the drawer serves to prevent access to the contents of the casing;

Other novel features of the invention will appear in the following description and be specified in the claims. I

In the drawings illustrative of the invention, Figure 1 is a longitudinal sectional elevation., Fig. 2 isra transverse sectional elevation on the line Il II of Fig.`1. Fig. 3 is a perspective view, on a smaller scale, of the device complete. Fig, 4 is a perspectiveview of the slid'able. drawer. Fig. 5 is a perspective.

view of the movable drawer-bottom and Fi g.

y 6 is a perspective view of the operating-shaft i i 4of,the;drawer-bottorn detached, Figs. 4:, 5,

,and 6 being on the same scale as Fig. 3.

The outer casing (here indicated at 10 and .preferably made oblong in shape) is con- .structedof Sheet metal, preferably steel, properly braced and supported to secure the requisite stiffness for rendering the box sufficiently strong to resist surreptitious tamvpering, this being one of the essential re- =quirements. for` mail-boxes,especially when which is disposed to form a closure to the lower part of the casing, as shown 'in'Figs 1 and 3, the door being provided with an aperture 15, engaging a hasp 16, to'afford means for the attachmlent of a lock,(r'epresented M17.)

Engaging the casing 10 above thebar 11 is a drawer 18,V the front of the drawer completely filling the front of the casinglO above the bar 11, as shown. This drawer 1,8 is supported slidably within the casing, so that it may be withdrawn partially therefrom, as

hereinafter explained. The drawer`18 is proi vided with a movable bo tton1. 19, having boltholes 19' therein, said'bott'om supported upon a longitudinalshaft 20, having bolt-holes 20' therein,,which register with the holes19'` in the bottom 19-and through which the bol'ts 12" pass and hold the bottom 19 to the'shaft 20. The shaft is turned upward at its inner end, as at 21, andvpivotall'y connected to the rear end of 'the drawer-.bywa pivot 22, while the opposite end ofthe shaft 20 is likewise turned upward, as at 23, and extendedout- Ward through'the front of the drawer and provided withV an operating-handle 25 on its outer end, as shown. The longitu'dinal shaft 20 is connected to the under side of the bottom 19 at one side of its center,`preferably about one-third of the transverse width of the bottom, as indicated in Fig. 2, and the ends 21 23 extending upwardrand inward Vat an angle of about forty-jfive degreves, n'd the pivot 21 and the handle end 25, engaging the drawer ends at their centers, as shown. By

this means the bottom 19 is suspended centrally in the drawer, but with its support 20 at one side of the center, so that when the handle 25 is operated the first movement of the drawer-bottom Will be off to one side at the same time that it is rotated. By this means the drawer-bottom is moved out from under the mail-matter and the latter dumped into the receptacle and the depending edge of the bottom 19 projected into a Vertical position at one side of the casing below the line of the cross-bar 11, so that the tilting of the bottom 19 will not only depositthe mail-matter which has been previouslyplaced thereon into the receptacle, but will also serve as a stop to prevent the opening of the drawer by engaging the cross-bar 11. Thns it will be impossible to open the drawer 18 when the bottom is inverted and gain access to the mail-matter in the receptacle by that means. It will also be observed that when the drawer is opened or partially opened the bottom 19 will be prevented from movement by the bar 1l,so that it is impossible to invert the drawerbottom when the drawer is open.

Attached to the shaft 20 is a depending stop 26, adapted to engage the bar 11 when the drawer is open to prevent its entire withdrawal, so that access to the mail-matter in the casing cannot be obtained by removing the drawer. The stop 26 might be attached to one of the sides of the drawer and accomplish the same result, but will preferably be attached to the shaft 20, as shown.

The stop 26 will be located at some distance from the rear end of the shaft 20 and the drawer 18, so that the drawer can be opened only to a partial exteut, just sufficient to permit the insertion of the mail, leaving a large portion of the drawer within the casing at all times to serve as a protection to the mailmatter and render it impossible to gain access thereto around the edges of the drawer. This is an important feature of the invention and greatly increases its efficiency by correspondingly increasing the means of protection to the mail-matter. By this simple means a very efficient, simple, easily-constructed, and a very safe device is produced which while being very easily operated by the mail-carrier affords ample protection to the mail-matter not only from the weather, but from being tampered with unlawfully.

It will be noted that the mail-carrier is not required to carry a key to unlock the drawer to insert the mail, but is simply required to withdraw the drawer, insert the mail, return the drawer to its place, and give the handle 25 a quarter-turn to the right to dump the mail-matter and then release it, when it will return to its normal position by gravity.

The hasp 16 provides for the employment of any form of lock, so that each owner of a box could secure it by his own individual lock, the advantage of which arrangement is obvious.

As before stated, the casing and its mailreceiving drawer will be of any required size and material and may be modified and altered in minor particulars without departing from the principle of the invention 01' sacrificing any of its advantages.

Having thus described myinventon, what I clairn is--- 1. A mail-box comprising a casing having a drawer slidably disposed therein and provided with a movable bottom adapted when inverted to deposit the contents of the drawer in the casing, and means wherehy said bottom when inverted is adapted to prevent the opening of the drawer, substantially as described.

2. A mail-box comprising a casing having one end open, a drawer in said casing and movable through the upper part of said open end, an independent movable closure to the lower part of said open end, the drawer being provided with a movable bottom adapted when inverted to deposit the contents of the drawer in the casing, and means whereby when said bottom is inverted it will prevent the opening of the drawer, substantially as described.

3. A mail-box comprising a casing having a drawer slidably disposed therein and provided with a movable bottom adapted, when inverted, to deposit the contents of the drawer in the casing and project therein and prevent the opening of the drawer until returned to its normal position ,suhstantially as described.

4;. A mail-box comprising a casing having a drawer slidably disposed therein, a rockshaftlon gitudinally supported in said drawer, the drawer being provided with a movable bottom supported upon said shaft whereby when said shaft is rotated said bottom will be inverted to deposit the mail in the casing below the drawer, and serve as a stop to provent the opening of the drawer while the bottom is inverted, substantially as described.

5. A mail-box comprising a casing having a drawer slidably disposed therein, a rockshaft longitudinally supported in said drawer, the drawer being provided with a movable bottom supported upon said shaft, and a stop ,upon said shaft adapted to prevent the removal of the drawer, substantially as described.

6. A mail-box comprising a casing having a drawer slidably disposed therein, a rockshaft in said drawer having upturned ends pivotally engaging the drawer, the drawer being provided with a movablelbottom supported by said shaft, means forrotating said shaft, whereby said bottom will be moved to one side of the drawer and inverted and project into the casing below the drawer, substantially as described.

7. In a mail-box, a casing open at one end, a transverse bar intermediatelydisposed across said open end, a movable closure to said open end below said bar, a drawer slidably disposed within the casing above the bar, and provided with a movable bottom adapted, when inverted, to deposit the contents of the drawer in the casing, and to engage said bar and IOO thereby prevent the opening of the'drawer when Ysaid bottom is inits inverted position, substntiaily as descrihed.V

8. A mail-box comprisinga easing having a drawer slidably disposed therein and provided with a movable vbottom adapted, When inverted, to deposit the contents of the drawer in the easing, and engage the easing 'and preventv the drawer from being opened while the bottom is inverted, and a'stop intermediately of the drawer adapted to prevent its removal from the easing, substantially as desoribed.

9. A mail-box comprising a easing having. a drawer slidably disposed therein, a rockshaft longitudinally disposed in said drawer at one side of the center and having upwardly and inwardly extended ends pivotally conneeted at the center of the drawer ends, the, Vdrawer` being` provided With amovable botf tom engaging said rock-shaft, and means operating through one end ofsaidd'rawenwhereby said shaft and its extended ends may he rotated to cause saidbottomlto be tnrn'ed to one. side and inverted; and .supported centrally of the drawer by gravity, substantially WILL-IAM B. BARNES.l Witnesses: I

A. OONNOLE, JOHN L. BAKER. 

